Presentation by Beate Kallenbach-Herbert and Dr Bettina Brohmann at OECD-NEA Symposium “The Safety Case for Deep Geological Disposal of Radioactive Waste: 2013 State of the Art”, Paris, October 7 - 9, 2013

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Demonstrating Safety –
Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC
Beate Kallenbach-Herbert, Bettina Brohmann
OECD-NEA Symposium “The Safety Case for Deep Geological
Disposal of Radioactive Waste: 2013 State of the Art”
Paris, October 7 - 9, 2013

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Contents
1. Short Introduction to the InSOTEC Project
2. Demonstrating Safety – an Issue for Sociotechnical Analysis
3. Potential Implications for the “Safety Case in
the societal context”
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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1. Introduction
The InSOTEC project
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InSOTEC is a 3 years FP7 EURATOM project
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InSOTEC is drawing on work in the social studies of science and
technology  it starts from the proposition that social and technical
processes are inextricably bound together
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Radioactive waste management is therefore a combined social and
technical activity
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InSOTEC focusses on making explicit this interplay by tracing
associated processes, involved actors, modifications to earlier
solutions
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“Demonstrating Safety” = 1 of 4 exemplary topics for in-depth
analysis of socio-technical (S-T) combinations
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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2. Demonstrating Safety – an issue for S-T analysis
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Reversibility
Demonstrating
Safety
Siting
Technology
transfer
Task Leader
Universiteit Antwerpen
Task Leader
Öko-Institut e.V.
Task Leader
Univerzita Karlova
Task Leader
Goeteborgs Universitet
4 case studies and
1 topical report
5 case studies and
1 topical report
3 case studies and
1 topical report
4 case studies and
1 topical report
Concluding Report WP2
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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2. Demonstrating Safety – an issue for S-T analysis
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Structure of research activities on Demonstrating Safety
Demonstrating
Safety
5 case studies and
1 topical report
5 case studies:
-Copper Corrosion Finland
-Copper Corrosion Sweden
-Social Learning
-Computer Modeling
-Research Laboratories (URLs)
synthesising topical report
Concluding Report
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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2. Demonstrating Safety – an issue for S-T analysis
Current developments on how to approach analysis from a sociotechnical view point (Work in Progress!)
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Tracing Modifications of technical solutions / processes / methods
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Evaluating awareness rising factors of the socio-technical dimension
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the occurrences by which they are triggered
the processes by which they are facilitated or accompanied
the actors / actors’ networks involved
behaviour of certain actors in controversial discussions
changes in public interests
milestones
…
Applying the methodological approach of “Problematisation”
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the general formulation of: a problem, the ways to address it and the
identification of most legitimate actors for doing so
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acknowledging dynamics and instability
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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3. Potential implications for the Safety Case –
The understanding of Safety
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„Safety is the fundamental concept in societal decision making“
[Möller: Safety and Decision-Making, Stockholm 2006]
 Solutions
for complex projects have to face developments in
societal
political
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
objectives
technical
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values
habits
Safety is multidimensional: Comprises the severity of potential
damage/harm, the probability, uncertainties
Safety is relative:
 Broadly agreed reference levels necessary (which may change over
time – see above): safety criteria, evaluation standards (e.g. above
agreed levels, best possible safety above agreed levels)
Well understood and agreed Safety Concept = basis for
the Safety Case
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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3. Potential implications for the Safety Case –
How to show safety
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The Safety Case is a tool to show (“demonstrate”) that the planned
facility fulfils the safety reference levels
Long-lasting timescales and concept of passive safety cause special
challenges and require new approaches:
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A collection of arguments developed with different methods
‒ Stepwise development
‒ …
 Early agreements necessary:
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Which arguments and methods are relevant, necessary and sensible,
e.g. what is the role of natural analogues?
How to design the stepwise process (who, when and what)
What are the issues that have to be treated and to which detail in the
different steps of a stepwise approach – what is technically possible,
what is necessary or desirable from different viewpoints
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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3. Potential implications for the Safety Case –
Concluding remarks
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A socio-technical approach can support
‒ broad interdisciplinary discussions
‒ bringing all arguments and viewpoints on the table
‒ the development of processes for discourse and modification
It contributes …

•
•
to the development of basic principles of a Safety Case
to making the SC a strong tool in decision making
Challenges:
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Common “language” and mutual learning
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Flexibility of technical concepts – technical democracy
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The implementation of suitable processes
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Finding a balance between open discourse – binding solutions
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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Contact
Beate Kallenbach-Herbert
Bettina Brohmann
Öko-Institut e.V.
Darmstadt Office
Rheinstr. 95
D-64295 Darmstadt
phone: +49 6151 8191 122
mail: b.kallenbach@oeko.de
Demonstrating Safety – Lessons Learnt by InSOTEC │Kallenbach-Herbert, Brohmann│Paris│October 9, 2013
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